Ordnance.



No. 789,833. PATENTED MAY 16, 1905.

B. BEHR. I

ORDNANOE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 16, 1904.

NITED STATES Patented May 16, 1905.

ORDNANCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 789,833, dated May 16,1905.

Application filed April l6 1904. Serial No. 203,494.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, BURKARD BEHR, a subject of the German Emperor, and aresident of Hamburg, in the German Empire, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Ordnance, of which the following is aspecification.

This invent-ion relates to a field-gun with recoil-barrel, and moreespecially to a gun-carriage wheel-axle which is cranked both upwardlyand downwardly, and to the special manner of suspending the gun-carriageon such axle.

In some known kinds of ordnances or fieldguns the axle for the wheels ofthe gun-carriage is only bent or cranked upward, whereas in accordancewith the present invention it is also cranked in the downward directionfor the purpose of insuring greater rigidity to the axle. In the saidknown field-guns the guncarriage, which is loosely mounted upon theaxle, may be raised or lowered in a vertical direction. In accordancewith this known arrangement, therefore, the recoil after firing or thetractive effort exerted by the horses when the gun is being moved istransmitted directly through the gun-carriage mountings--that is to say,through the checks of the gun-carriage.as a hard non-elastic shock uponthe wheel-axle, whereby the parts of the gun, and more especially thewheel-axle and the guncarriage checks, are prejudioially aflected.

The object of this invention is to obviate this defect, and this end isattained by suspending the gun-carriage cheeks upon the wheel-axle, notby means of vertical but of obliquely-directed slots, and arranging inthese slotsthat is to say, between their front ends and thewheel-axlesuitable springs, either spiral or flat, which absorb ordiminish the shocks produced by the recoil after firing or by tractionof the carriage, rendering the transmission of the shocks betweencarriage and wheel-axle elastic. The oblique slots in the gun-carriagecheeks are so arranged that during the firing the gun-carriage is, so tospeak, independent of the axle and does not aflect the latterprejudicially. After firing, the guncarriage, together with the cradleor upper of screw-nuts.

carriage carrying the barrel, and the latter move back as far as thespur or pike at the rear end of the gun-carriage allows it, whereuponthe barrel recoils, the shock of this recoil motion being received orabsorbed by the gun-carriage. The springs inserted in the oblique slotsserve to diminish or soften the shock exerted upon the axle by thegun-carriage when the latter immediately after firing is moving backonto its pike. By this arrangement the axle is prevented from beingstrained in too greata manner. In order that, especially when the gun isbeing moved, the axle may not be strained exclusively at itsbearing-points in the gun-carriage, connecting-rods are provided whichconnect the axle extremities inside the wheels with the two carriagecheeks. These connecting rods are preferably attached to thegun-carriage checks in such a manner that sufficient play is left for aneffective yielding between the gun-carriage and axle. Theconnecting-rods can be lengthened or taken up as desired by means Bysufficiently shortening the connectingrods the gun carriage may bebrought close against the axle and the yielding connection betweengun-carriage and axle made entirely rigid, if desired. Theconnecting-rods are therefore adapted to adjust the action of thebuffer-springs.

The present invention also relates to a device for carrying thetrunnions of the cradle for the barrel, which device consists ofslideblocks mounted in the gun-carriage cheeks. The form and arrangementof these blocks is such that they are able to rock around a point lyingbehind the axis of the trunnions.

The invention is illustrated by way of example in the accompanyingdrawings, the representation being mainly diagrammatic.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the gun. The gun-carriage axle issectioned inside the lefthand wheel, and this latter is omitted. Fig. 2is an upper plan view of the gun and ahorizontal section through thetrunnions. Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of the gun, partly in section,through the trunnions. The connectingrods are indicated by dotted lines.Fig. 4 is a detail view of the upwardly and downwardly cranked middleportion of the gun-carriage axle. Fig. 5 shows the mounting of thetrunnions in the gun-carriage cheeks.

Similar letters of reference refer to like parts throughout the severalfigures.

The gun-carriage axle a is upwardly and downwardly cranked at its middleportion. Upon either side of this cranked portion a a square portions (6are formed, upon which the gun-carriage cheeks Z) are mounted by meansof slots 6', of suitable form and running in the longitudinal directionof the said checks. The cradle 17, which carries the recoil-barrel la.in suitable guides 11, is mounted with trunnions in the gun-carriagecheeks in such a manner that the cradle and the recoil-barrel aresituated inside the longitudinal annular part formed by the doubleerankingu/ a. By forward or rearward displacement of the earriage uponthe square portions a" of the axle the trunnions come higher or lower,so that the height of the recoil-barrel can be altered.

In the bearing-slots Z/that is to say, between their front extremitiesand the bearing parts af are interposed buffer springs l, which insure ayielding mounting of the guncarriage on the axle, so that shocks on thecarriage (reeoils, tractive eiforts of the drafthorses, and the like)are yieldingly transmitted to the axle.

Upon the axle a, between the Wheels are mounted sleeves 112, providedwith eyes or -lugs, and lugs 72, presenting eyes, are fixedadvantageous.

upon the cheeks of the carriage. The sleeves m and lugs n are connectedby means of rods 1). By appropriately screwing up or lengthening theconnecting-rods by means of threaded nuts 0 the spring-mounting of thecarriage on the axle may be so adjusted that not only the middle butalso the ends of the axle receive the strain, and this is of greatimportance, especially when the gun is being moved from place to place.The eyesin the lugs 21 should be made of such a size as to permit theaxle to yield sufieiently in its bearings. When desired, theconnecting-rods may be tightened up to such an extent as to render thegun-carriage quite rigid with the axle.

The suspension of the trunnions in the guncarriage may be effected inone of the usual ways; but the arrangement shown in Fig. 5 is In thiscase the trunnions are mounted in special slide-blocks l1, inserted inthe gun-carriage cheeks. These slide-blocks permit of a certainhorizontal rocking of the barrel arounda point situated behind thetrunnions, so that some amount of lateral aiming may be effected withoutaltering the position of the gun-carriage.

For braking the recoil of the barrel two hydraulic brakes c ofwell-known construction may be provided. Between the two hydraulicbrakes is a cylinder 1', containinga rod surrounded by a spring, thesaid rod being connected to a lug it of the barrel. When the barrelrccoils, this spring is compressed in order to push forward the barrelinto the firing position as soon as the recoil has been finished. Suchspring devices are well known and need, therefore, no furtherrepresentation and description.

The breech mechanism consists of a semicylindrical swinging block w,hinged to the barrel.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new therein, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a field-gun mount, the combination of the checks each having alongitudinally-arranged slot formed therein, and an axle seated in saidslots having an upwardly and downwardly cranked central portion.

2. In a field-gun mount, the combination of the cheeks each having alongitudinally-arranged slot formed therein, an axle seated in saidslots, and a buffer member seated in the latter, for the purposespecified.

3. In a field-gun mount, the combination of the cheeks each having alongitudinally-arranged slot formed therein near the forward end, anaxle seated in said slots, a brace-rod connecting each cheek with theaxle, and means for adjusting said brace'rods, for the purposespecified.

4:. In a field-gun mount, the combination of the cheeks each having alongitudinally-arranged slot therein near the forward end, an axlemounted in said slots, bearings formed on the axle for said slots, abuffer-spring interposed between the bearing and one end of the slot,and an adjustable brace-rod connecting each cheek with the axle, for thepurpose specified.

5. In a field-gun mount, the combination of the cheeks each having alongitudinally-arranged slot formed therein near the forward end, anaxle, bearings formed on the latter for said slots, a buffer-spring ineach slot interposed between the bearing and forward end of the slot, abrace-rod loosely connecting each check with the axle, and meansforadjusting said rods.

6. In a field-gun mount, the combination of two cheeks each providedwith a longitudinally-arranged slot near its forward end, an axle havinga squared bearing portion resting in said slots, a lug, having anelongated eye, mounted on each cheek, lugs on the outer extremities ofthe axle, rods connecting said lugs, and means for adjusting the rods,for the purpose specified.

7. In a field-gun mount, the combination with two cheeks each providedwith a longitudinally-arranged slot near its forward end, an axle havingan upwardly and downwardly cranked central portion, and abearing-surface on each side of said central portion for said slots, ofa bearing-block mounted in each cheek in rear of the slot, a'cradle, arecoil" barrel therein and trunnions on the cradle mounted in saidblocks.

8. A field-gun comprising a Wheeled axle having an upwardly anddownwardly cranked central portion, a square bearing formed on each sideof the central portion, a cheek-piece mounted on each of said bearingsby means of a slot running in the longitudinal direction of said cheeks,a buffer-spring interposed between the bearing and the forward end ofthe slot, a slide-block mounted in each cheek in rear of the slot, arecoil-barrel, a cradle for the latter, and trunnions on the cradlehaving bearing in said blocks.

9. A field-gun comprising a wheeled axle having a yoke central portion,a square hearing formed on each side of the yoke, acheekpiece mounted oneach bearing by means of a slot running in the longitudinal direction ofsaid cheeks, a buifer-spring interposed in the slot between the forwardend thereof and the bearing, a slide-block mounted in each cheek-in rearof the slot, a recoil-barrel within the yoke, a cradle for said barrel,trunnions on the cradle having bearing in said blocks, a lug having anelongated eye mounted on each cheek, lugs on the outer extremities ofthe axle, a rod connecting each cheek with one of the extremities, andmeans for adjusting the length of the rods, substantially as and for thepurpose specified.

BURKARD BEHR. Witnesses:

MAX LEMCKE, E. H. L. MUMMENHOFF.

